Descrizione prodotto

Sinossi

Cobalt City, Jewel of New England, has been the home of superheroes since the first people settled on the rocky shore. But as the old heroes move away, die, or retire, it falls to a new generation to step up and bear the burden—protecting Cobalt, and the world, from the nefarious plans of madmen and malicious Gods. Join a diverse band of new teen heroes as they pick up the mask, challenge destiny, and dare to become legends.

Wrecker of Engines by Rosemary Jones features Morgan Lee, a young immigrant from Hong Kong who has come to Cobalt City to escape enemies he has made among the crime syndicates back home, and to research the history of a family he has only heard whispers about. Discovering the truth of his past will require him to create a new family of allies, especially when the secrets he seeks are in danger of being swept away by a steampunk villain seeking vengeance denied for over a century.

Tatterdemalion by Nikki Burns features Miranda, a girl who survived a plane crash in the Alaska wilderness and a month alone waiting for rescue only to discover the strength, and costume, she found there has its own agenda. Upon her return to Cobalt City, she discovers that mysterious blackouts and teen gangs have turned the city into chaos. And the Alaskan tundra is not nearly as unforgiving as the social circles at her new school. It will take the collective wisdom of the Parliament of Rags that inhabit her costume and the resolve Miranda earned in the wilds to bring the fight to her faceless enemy.

Kensei by Jeremy Zimmerman features Jamie Hattori, a headstrong young woman caught between worlds on a journey of self-discovery. With a stolen sword and a gift for speaking to spirits, she is wearing herself out balancing school, roller derby, a budding teen romance, and protecting the Karlsburg neighborhood of Cobalt City. The spirits have a warning—evil is coming, heralded by mysterious golden apples, a vicious gossip blog, and bloodsucking owls. How can one girl expect to challenge the will of ancient gods—especially when there’s a Chemistry test on Friday?

Fun. The three stories in this compilation are fun. They're also fresh, engaging and delightful with enough shadows in the corner to make everything three dimensional. I do have a favorite, but all of them made me pretty happy with their twists on the world and their quirky, engaging heroes. Give "Cobalt City Rookies" a read. It's a great partner for a rainy day.

1 di 1 persone hanno trovato utile la seguente recensione

4.0 su 5 stelleMarvelous Three-Pack30 dicembre 2012

Di Bookiemonster - Pubblicato su Amazon.com

Formato:Formato Kindle

Just finished Cobalt City Rookies, and I really enjoyed it.

I'm not usually a fan of shared world fiction, but I have to admit, Cobalt City is a pretty amazing place, and I was happy to reside there for a while. I love how the world and its sensibility held three very different YA stories together.

Wrecker of Engines had a great steam-punk feel, but I felt a slight disconnect from the characters. Like they were holding back from me, the reader, and I couldn't quite get to know them.

Being a huge fan of survival shows and literature, I LOVED the first half of Tatterdemalion. Plus, the idea of the cloak- how it worked and what it could do- were fresh and creative. However, because the beginning was so compelling and gripping to me, I lost a little interest once our heroine returned to the city and the story became more about city politics.

Finally, my favorite, Kensei, caught and held my attention from start to finish. The characters were well-developed and I felt a connection with them. The heroine is real and strong. Her ability to talk and connect with all the local spirits felt very Miyazakian to me. Oh, can Miyazaki do a movie of Kensei? That would ROCK! I loved how not everything came right with her family, because honestly, it doesn't always, does it? And of course, there was roller derby. Who doesn't like roller derby?

Overall, a great read and introduction to the Cobalt City world.

And full disclosure. I was given a copy of this e-book in exchange for a fair and honest review, and I have given one.

1 di 1 persone hanno trovato utile la seguente recensione

5.0 su 5 stelleThree great stories28 dicembre 2012

Di Shirley M. Vogel - Pubblicato su Amazon.com

Formato:Formato Kindle|Acquisto verificato

Science fiction is not my normal, but since one of the authors is my son-in-law, I had to give it a try. I was very pleasantly surprised. The characters in all three stories were very believable and the plots move at a good pace. I liked them so much I want go back to read some of the other Cobalt City books. Only one of the characters came in with superhero confidence. The other two had to grow in to the role and find out about all of their powers. It was a fun read.

There are three stories here, all of them the origin stories of young, up-and-coming Cobalt City heroes. The heroes are still new, still wet behind the ears. They're not the super-experienced, wealthy, well-connected superheroes who think nothing of defeating planetary threats. These are tales of kids who are balancing their powers with getting a passing grade in Biology. I think it's more fun that way!

Rosemary Jones' "Wrecker of Engines" is an introduction to a young tech hero we may well see more of in the future, working to uncover a mysterious family history and battle a reawakened evil. Points for some great lines, the steampunk elements (including a pedal-powered copter!), and for setting a battle in a library. I have to say honestly that I didn't really feel a huge amount of suspense for the hero -- despite the villain, the hero seemed to have things well under control. Next time -- and I do hope there's a next time -- I hope Ms. Jones dials it up a notch on her brass-plated, steam-driven Danger-o-meter!

Nikki Burns' "Tatterdemalion" has some strong features. I enjoyed the main character and her powers. I wanted to know more about the mysterious cloak! I wish the author had taken a bit more time to polish, refine, and rework. Perhaps future editions will allow for some edits? I did enjoy it, and would enjoy more adventures in the future, especially if they cast more light on the origins of the cloak itself.

My favorite of the three was Jeremy Zimmerman's "Kensei." Full disclosure: I was a beta reader for the first half of the book, so perhaps that prejudices me in its favor.

I really enjoyed Kensei -- a lot. I loved everything about it -- the pacing, dialogue, plotting, characterization, mythological elements, fight scenes, dating problems mixed with wondering about sexuality, roller derby scenes -- everything! There was even a little joke about Unitarian Universalists. Immediately after finishing it, I wanted to start reading it all over again.

Kensei is an appealing character who already has a tough time balancing who she is (a hero at heart) with who she's expected to be on the outside (a regular high school student). During the course of the story, she is slammed with trouble after trouble after trouble, until it seems she'll never come out from under everything. And yet, through her own guts and determination, she does! The ending is satisfying -- everything is tied up in a neat bow, with no annoying loose plot ends... except for those that would lead into another story. My one quibble is that the final confrontation did not have enough physical violence for me -- it felt watered down, but perhaps that's for the best, in our super-violence-saturated world? Make it punchier next time maybe? But I do hope that there IS a next time! I can haz sequel please?

Buy this! For Kensei alone, it's worth your money. All three for this price is a total steal!